France + Travel and transport | The Guardianhttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/france+environment/travel-and-transport
Indexen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2015Wed, 04 Mar 2015 00:21:35 GMT2015-03-04T00:21:35Zen-gbGuardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2015The Guardianhttp://assets.guim.co.uk/images/guardian-logo-rss.c45beb1bafa34b347ac333af2e6fe23f.pnghttp://www.theguardian.com
Tracey Thorn takes the slow train to Innsbruck, Austriahttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2015/jan/17/-sp-tracey-thorn-takes-the-slow-train-to-innsbruck
<p>The singer-songwriter is soothed by the rock and lull of Europe’s railways en route to Austria</p><p>• <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/competition/2015/jan/17/win-camper-van-holiday-spain">Competition: win a camper van holiday in Spain</a><br></p><p>Travel pieces tend to be written by daredevils, the type who, when asked if they fancy a trip on a raft up the Limpopo, cry, “Not half!” and grab a pre-packed rucksack. I’m not that type. I’m more the type who thinks the Limpopo might be infested with crocodiles or hippos, and who needs at least a week to make a list of essential toiletries before wondering which size suitcase to take. I don’t like cliffs or sheer drops, or skiing, or cable cars, or heights, so I’m still not sure how I ended up, in the rapidly fading light of an autumn afternoon in Innsbruck, slowly inching my way down a mountain path in inappropriate footwear, and wishing I were dead.</p><p>I’d come here with my friend Lavinia on a European adventure by rail, because of all things travel-related, what I love most is a train. Both my grandfathers were train drivers, so perhaps it’s in my blood. And being a non-driver, I am grateful for any form of transport that requires nothing more of me than gawping out the window. We’d planned an itinerary that would whisk us in two days from the centre of London to the heart of the Alps, beginning with a Eurostar to Paris, followed by a Swiss TGV Lyria train to Zurich. There we stopped overnight in the charming <a href="http://www.ladysfirst.ch/en/">Lady’s First hotel</a>, opened in 2001 exclusively for women, though now admitting men, and occupying a 19th-century town house in a quiet, leafy neighbourhood by the lake.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2015/jan/17/-sp-tracey-thorn-takes-the-slow-train-to-innsbruck">Continue reading...</a>Tracey ThornTravelMusicRail travelAustriaEuropeFranceChannel TunnelSwitzerlandLife and styleTravel and transportSat, 17 Jan 2015 09:00:03 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2015/jan/17/-sp-tracey-thorn-takes-the-slow-train-to-innsbruckPhotograph: Dominik Gigler for the GuardianTracey Thorn and friend Lavinia at Café Sacher.Photograph: Dominik Gigler for the GuardianTracey Thorn and friend Lavinia at Café Sacher.Photograph: Dominik Gigler/Dominik Gigler for the GuardianTracey Thorn by the river Inn in Innsbruck. Photograph: Dominik Gigler/Dominik Gigler for the GuardianPhotograph: Dominik Gigler/Dominik Gigler for the GuardianTracey Thorn by the river Inn in Innsbruck. Photograph: Dominik Gigler/Dominik Gigler for the GuardianTracey Thorn2015-01-17T09:00:03ZBubble car self-service scheme launches in Parishttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/sep/30/paris-bubble-car-scheme-launches
Four-seater electric 'Bluecars' hit streets of French capital after success of Velib bikes<p>Parisian leaders will wheel out the first of the city's blue, bubble-shaped cars this weekend in what aims to be one of the largest self-service electric car schemes.</p><p>Anyone with a driving licence will be able to pick up one of the four-seater electric &quot;Bluecars&quot; for short journeys around the city, dropping it off at any battery point. The Autolib service follows the French capital's success with Velib, the self-service bike scheme that has been copied by London.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/sep/30/paris-bubble-car-scheme-launches">Continue reading...</a>Electric, hybrid and low-emission carsTechnologyGreenhouse gas emissionsTravel and transportEthical and green livingMotoringEnvironmentFranceEuropeWorld newsParisFranceTravelFri, 30 Sep 2011 17:15:51 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/sep/30/paris-bubble-car-scheme-launchesEric Piermont/AFP/Getty ImagesOne of the Paris 'Bluecars' at the Autolib electric car pick-up service's operational centre in Vaucresson. Photograph: Eric Piermont/AFP/Getty ImagesEric Piermont/AFP/Getty ImagesOne of the Paris 'Bluecars' at the Autolib electric car pick-up service's operational centre in Vaucresson. Photograph: Eric Piermont/AFP/Getty ImagesAngelique Chrisafis in Paris2011-09-30T17:15:51Z10:10 travel: Low-carbon holidays for 2010http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/dec/31/10-10-travel-low-carbon-holidays
You can still get away from it all while reducing your carbon emissions. These 10 ideas for green breaks should give you inspiration for any time of year<p>Recharge yourself for the year ahead at the stunning new Scarlet eco-hotel in Mawgan Porth, Cornwall. Its motto is &quot;sumptuous need not mean unsustainable&quot;, and while it comes with the trappings (and price tag) of a luxury hotel, the building is heated by a biomass boiler and the indoor pool by solar panels. The hotel's tented, holistic spa offers ayurvedic treatments, an outdoor reed-filtered pool and clifftop log-fired seaweed baths, looking out to sea. Free yoga lessons are available.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/dec/31/10-10-travel-low-carbon-holidays">Continue reading...</a>Green travel10:10 climate change campaignEthical holidaysTravelFranceCornwallScotlandNetherlandsAdventure travelSwitzerlandSkiingTurinKentEthical and green livingTravel and transportEnvironmentClimate changeGreenhouse gas emissionsCarbon footprintsThu, 31 Dec 2009 13:20:49 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/dec/31/10-10-travel-low-carbon-holidaysPREco pad ... hanging relaxation pods at the the Scarlet's ayurvedic spa, CornwallPRSpa at The Scarlet hotel, CornwallLiane Katz2009-12-31T13:20:49ZThe authors of Clean Breaks select their sustainable Mediterranean travel favouriteshttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/aug/02/sustainable-mediterranean-travel-spain-italy
Beyond the big hotels and smart resorts, the Mediterranean offers a huge range of more sustainable - and more interesting - experiences, from sharing lunch with shepherds to helping save endangered wildlife. Here the authors of Clean Breaks, a new Rough Guide, pick their favourites<p>It's one thing to plonk a yurt at the bottom of a field and call it luxury camping, quite another to buy a private meadow in Andalucia, import yurts from Mongolia and Afghanistan, drill a well, install an outdoor swimming pool, and run it all off-grid. There are five yurts set among shady groves of cork and olive trees, each with a large double bed, sheepskin rugs, velvet cushions, a power point, a compost toilet and a bamboo bathroom outside (including solar-powered shower). There is a small private garden outside each yurt, but the rest of the meadow is left untouched to encourage wildflowers, birds and butterflies.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/aug/02/sustainable-mediterranean-travel-spain-italy">Continue reading...</a>Green travelSpainItalyFranceSardiniaCorsicaSicilyCreteGreeceCroatiaTurkeyAdventure travelFood and drinkCycling holidaysTravelHotelsEnvironmentEthical and green livingTravel and transportSat, 01 Aug 2009 23:01:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/aug/02/sustainable-mediterranean-travel-spain-italyTethys/PRMonitoring whales and dolphins in the Ligurian Sea. Photograph: Tethys/PRTethys/PRMonitoring whales and dolphins in the Ligurian Sea.
Photograph: Tethys/PRGuardian Staff2009-08-01T23:01:00ZTop 100 flight free holidays: Long-distance walkshttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100flightfreeholidays.walkingholidays
From a 10-day hike in Ireland to a month-long pilgrimage trail to Santiago de Compostela, here is our pick of the best walking holidays<p>You'll need both swimsuit and hiking boots to make the most of this 509km trek. Following Turkey's southern coast from Fethiye to Antalya, it passes white sand beaches, unspoilt villages, and sites such as the ancient Lycian city of Myra. Leave a month for the full thing (see <a href="http://www.lycianway.com">lycianway.com</a>), although most people break it down into week-long sections, camping or sleeping in rustic guesthouses, such as The Watermill in Faralya (<a href="http://www.natur-reisen.de">natur-reisen.de</a>, €43pp pn).</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100flightfreeholidays.walkingholidays">Continue reading...</a>Top 100 flight free holidaysWalking holidaysAdventure travelGreen travelBudget travelTurkeySpainIrelandFranceItalyHotelsTravelTravel and transportGreenhouse gas emissionsCarbon footprintsEthical and green livingClimate changeEnvironmentHealth and fitnessTransportUK newsSat, 26 Apr 2008 11:50:21 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100flightfreeholidays.walkingholidaysThe Irish Image Collection/Design Pics/CorbisBest foot forward ... spectacular scenery hiking the Kerry Way in Ireland. Photograph: The Irish Image Collection/Design Pics/CorbisThe Irish Image Collection/Design Pics/CorbisGuardian Staff2008-04-26T11:50:21ZTop 100 flight free holidays: Cyclinghttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100flightfreeholidays.cyclingholidays
Cycling is healthy, environmentally friendly and economical. Jump on your bike and cycle to France, Spain or Holland<p>The quickest cycle trip to the continent is to sail to Calais. Turn right off the ferry and you'll soon find yourself meandering along the dramatic white cliffs of the C&ocirc;te d'Opal above stunnning sandy beaches. A leisurely three-day circular ride will take in fishing villages, local markets and historic sites in Calais and Boulogne. The ferry crossing costs from just &pound;12 each way for you and your bike (0871 222 2500, <a href="http://www.seafrance.com">seafrance.com</a>) making this trip not only easy and green but cheap too. </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100flightfreeholidays.cyclingholidays">Continue reading...</a>Top 100 flight free holidaysCycling holidaysAdventure travelGreen travelFranceSpainNetherlandsTravelTravel and transportGreenhouse gas emissionsCarbon footprintsEthical and green livingClimate changeEnvironmentHealth and fitnessTransportUK newsFri, 25 Apr 2008 23:07:27 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100flightfreeholidays.cyclingholidaysnull/PRChain gang... they say there are more bicycles than residents in Hollandnull/PRGuardian Staff2008-04-25T23:07:27ZTop 100 flight free holidays: On waterhttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100.flightfreeholidays
The prospect of another summer of airport delays, extra security and lost luggage looms. But you can avoid the chaos - turn to water as a means for travel and accommodation<p>Coming into harbour, the easterly wind picks up, scalping white caps off the heads of waves. Ahead a fishing boat, rusty and battered around the bows, punches into the chop of water, then turns south. The radio crackles to life on the bridge of our boat, the Glen Massan, and the engines are cut back, giving time for a ferry to dart out of the narrow harbour entrance. A pair of seals bob up near the rocks and watch our progress towards the pretty waterfront, the houses brightly painted and the castle romantically ruined and overgrown. Behind us are snow-peaked mountains, hillsides drizzled with golden gorse and lined with sunlight, then below in the water the sudden leap of a porpoise. This is a cruise, I remind myself, but not one of those anodyne luxury hotels on water, rather a true salty experience with itineraries that change with the winds and a trawl-net of wonderful experiences. No need, either, for planes or airports since we're sailing into Tarbert on the Kintyre peninsula, unbelievably just 40 miles from Glasgow.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100.flightfreeholidays">Continue reading...</a>Top 100 flight free holidaysCruisesBoating holidaysGreen travelWater sports holidaysAdventure travelShort breaksUnited KingdomIrelandFranceNorwayChannel IslandsNew YorkGermanyScotlandTravelTravel and transportGreenhouse gas emissionsCarbon footprintsEthical and green livingClimate changeEnvironmentTransportUK newsFri, 25 Apr 2008 23:07:25 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/apr/26/top100.flightfreeholidaysnull/PR'A true salty experience' ... cruising on a converted fishing trawlernull/PRKevin Rushby2008-04-25T23:07:25ZGo lightly: 10 eco-friendly places to stayhttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/mar/01/10ecohotels.greentravel
A new AA guide showcases over 100 eco-friendly places to stay around the world. Here, we pick 10 - from a treehouse to a city pad - that can be reached without flying<p><strong>Bloomfield House</strong>, Bath</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/mar/01/10ecohotels.greentravel">Continue reading...</a>Short breaksGreen travelHotelsUnited KingdomFranceItalySpainGermanyMoroccoTravelTop 10sEthical and green livingTravel and transportGreenhouse gas emissionsEnvironmentTransportUK newsTreehousesSat, 01 Mar 2008 00:14:19 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/mar/01/10ecohotels.greentravelTop of the tree ... sleep in a 200-year-old chestnut at Perch&eacute; dans le PercheGuardian Staff2008-03-01T00:14:19ZParis goes cycling madhttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/aug/16/ethicalliving.france
It has been a month since Paris introduced its city-wide bike rental scheme. So how is it going? Local resident Angelique Chrisafis finds out<p>No doubt the Tour de France helped, but when my rather substantial friend Jean, who has never knowingly walked more than 100m without the promise of a four-course meal at the end of it, began to trumpet the joys of cycling, I knew something profound was happening to the Parisian psyche. One month after its launch, Paris's V&eacute;lib', or &quot;freedom bike&quot; scheme, has turned the city cycling mad. You simply pick up a bike from one of the ubiquitous stands, ride it along for your short trip and drop it back at any random stand at your destination.</p><p>The first half-hour's pedal-time is free, with charges rising steeply afterwards. Day and night, tourists, commuters and returning party animals cruise by on the chic new machines. People have joyfully discovered the cheap new way of exercising en route to work or getting home drunk after the metro closes, hence a rush of hires after 1am. There's a glut of bikes deposited at stands at the bottom of hills and none left at the top, as people freewheel down from the heights of Belleville and Montmartre.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/aug/16/ethicalliving.france">Continue reading...</a>Ethical and green livingFranceParisGreen travelCycling holidaysFranceWorld newsLife and styleTravel and transportTransportUK newsEnvironmentEuropeThu, 16 Aug 2007 09:18:02 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/aug/16/ethicalliving.franceAngelique Chrisafis2007-08-16T09:18:02ZEco answershttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/newspaper/2007/may/19/saturday.green1
What's the cheapest and greenest way to get to Chamonix?<p><strong>What's the cheapest and greenest way to get to Chamonix?</strong><br />Roger Burton, Southampton</p><p>National Express (<a href="http://www.nationalexpress.com">nationalexpress.com</a>, 0870 5808080) runs an overnight coach service between London and Chamonix every day except Mondays and Saturdays. The journey takes 19 hours and costs from &pound;94 return. </p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/newspaper/2007/may/19/saturday.green1">Continue reading...</a>TravelGreen travelChamonixFranceRail travelSkiingTravel and transportTransportUK newsEnvironmentSat, 19 May 2007 09:39:28 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/newspaper/2007/may/19/saturday.green1Ski express ... how to travel to Chamonix by train. Photograph: John Van Hasselt/Corbis/SygmaRichard Hammond2007-05-19T09:39:28ZGreen travel schemes demystifiedhttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2007/mar/28/green.schemes.hotels
As green travel has become big business it has sparked a rise in faux ecotourism, or 'greenwashing'. Richard Hammond on the responsible travel schemes to trust<p>“You have to see it to Belize it” was scrawled across the T-shirts I saw hung on a roadside stall in Belize City a decade ago. Belize’s barrier reef – the second largest in the world - had just been enlisted as a world heritage site and the country was gearing up for a surge in tourism. Ten years on, Belize now vies with Costa Rica as the ecotourism capital of central America. </p><p>Its success reflects a growing trend for travel that puts something back into the environment and local communities. Britain’s buoyant green pound is sustaining a green travel market worth &pound;409m and it is set to grow by 25% a year, according to a recent report by market research analyst Mintel.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2007/mar/28/green.schemes.hotels">Continue reading...</a>TravelGreen travelHotelsBelizeUnited KingdomEuropeSouth AmericaAfricaAustraliaFranceEstoniaSwedenGreenlandEnvironmentTravel and transportTransportUK newsWed, 28 Mar 2007 15:16:29 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2007/mar/28/green.schemes.hotelsAwash with green ... is your holiday as green as it seems? Photograph: Getty/Will and Deni McIntyreRichard Hammond2007-03-28T15:16:29ZRichard Hammond on treehouses for grown-upshttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/aug/19/ecotourism.france.travelsenvironmentalimpact
<p>I was swinging in a hammock 30ft up, surrounded by oak trees, with the wind whistling through the leaves. I was staying in one of four treehouses at Orion B&amp;B in a wooded area 15 minutes inland from Cagnes-sur-Mer, just along from Nice on the C&ocirc;te d'Azur.</p><p>&quot;You get the best of both worlds,&quot; said Diane Van Den Berge, Orion's owner; guests come to fulfil their childhood dreams of living in a treehouse &quot;like Tarzan and Jane&quot;, yet while there's &quot;a feeling of isolation, there's also a degree of comfort in nature&quot;.</p> <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/aug/19/ecotourism.france.travelsenvironmentalimpact">Continue reading...</a>Green travelTravelFranceTravel and transportEnvironmentTransportSat, 19 Aug 2006 14:33:45 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/travel/2006/aug/19/ecotourism.france.travelsenvironmentalimpactRichard Hammond2006-08-19T14:33:45Z